Saturday, 9 August 2014

Tiny Tea 28 Day TEAtox - Week 1

If you follow me on Twitter and Instagram you may have seen that I started a 28 Day Teatox with Your Tea! For anyone who doesn't know what a teatox is - it's a type of detox that involves drinking a herbal tea, along with a healthy diet and regular exercise. A lot of people that I told about this thought that it was a tea only detox - but it's not! And I thought it would be helpful to record my experience and share it with you for anyone who is interested in it as well as for my own record. I know it isn't my usual thing on the blog, but it's a big change in my life and I've had a few requests to write about this on Instagram!Pre-warning: Heavy worded blog posts coming up...!

When you visit the Your Tea website, you can find out what tea is right for you depending on what result that it is you are looking for. I wanted something that would give me energy and make me feel healthier in general so Tiny Tea was the one for me. They claim Tiny Tea will: cleanse your system, assist weight loss, ease bloating, increase energy levels, relieve issues relating to food intolerance and IBS AND improve skin clarity. The words of Your Tea, not mine!

Tiny Tea itself, is to be taken 30 minutes before or after eating, 3 times a day. I've been doing this quite easily, usually before eating if I'm preparing dinner, or getting ready for work and after eating during one hour lunch breaks. Only a couple of times have I only left it 20 minutes due to time restraints, but I've been pretty strong and strict with myself for someone who breaks easy. I've also been quite good and keeping away from naughty and sugary foods and being healthy in general and also going for a run with the Nike Plus Running app, or training with the Nike Plus Training Club app. It's a complete different frame of mind to my health than I've had before but I prefer it and it isn't something I'm going to stop any time soon.

If you're wondering about the ingredients of Tiny Tea, it's an Oolong Tea with 'Jue Ming Zi, He Ye, Shan Zha, Lai Fu Zi', none of which make sense to me, but sound very medicinal! I drink mine sans sugar and milk (which you should anyway!) and just with a quarter teaspoon of honey for a little sweetness sometimes. I love the flavour of this tea and think I may prefer it to normal tea at the moment! I didn't at first but it's just lovely now!

Before I talk about the results, I'd like to mention that I have never dieted before, or attempted a detox before so I can't compare this to anything else. I also am very bad at keeping to a exercise routine, and have only recently starting being conscious of the fact that I need to exercise regularly. I feel the need to say this, because the results may vary depending on lifestyle and the type of person.

WITH the Teatox I have been eating slightly smaller meals until I don't feel hungry but not to the point where I am very full. I have been adding a lot of fruit and vegetables, taking away sugary snacks, and making my own dinners to replace takeaways and easy cook meals. I've always ate well during the day and in the morning, but evenings have always been my failure, so cutting out bad snacks and replacing them for yoghurt and fruit has helped. Also, I have been mixing running, cardio and tummy toning exercises depending on how much time I have and what I feel like doing that day. I know I shouldn't work my fitness routine that way, but due to my lifestyle and having to organise time in for it, I can only do so much on each day.

The Results:

+ As for physical health, I've noticed any bloating after eating that I was getting before after every meal is completely gone from about Day 3! I have a sensitive stomach, and I've felt so comfortable just eating as I normally would and just generally not feeling that awful cramping that you get sometimes after eating.

+ I also noticed about Day 4 that I was a lot more energetic and that I don't seem to feel tired until the very very end of the day around 10-11pm! It's really helped raise my energy levels as this is something I've always suffered with.

+ I've also noticed that I feel a lot cleaner in general if that makes sense. On the inside I mean! I don't know how to explain it, but I feel like my system has been flushed - without the nasty laxative effects you're supposed to get from a detox. That's something else Your Tea boasts about - not leaving you with the laxative effects that a detox normally does. But only if consumed as instructed!

+ Visually, my skin is clearer and I noticed this between Day 4-5 when I decided to go to work foundation or face make up free from then on! My skin seems to have a healthy glow and a fresh look, which I'm absolutely loving. It's the best results I've had yet! And as far as I can tell, there be no face demons whilst on this Teatox I hope!

+ Also physically, my tummy bloating is basically gone, and I seem to have lost some chubb around the tummy area which has always been my only quarrel with my body and self-consciousness. I have taken before photos, and I have taken week 1 too, but I'm not comfortable with sharing them just yet and may only do at the end of the Teatox.

No face make up - just mascara, eye liner, brows, lipstick and a little dab blusher.

For a week that is a lot of results. I honestly didn't expect this to work, and I'm still sceptical but only because, I've had other factors that could have helped result in this. Like the exercise routine that I didn't have before and the good eating which was only half there really. Chocolate is still my weakness and I'll admit it's been hard not to eat any, and I've failed most days. Also getting my new job has perked me up and sent me on a high, and I feel like this may have helped because I was feeling very low and a little unhappy before it happened. Either way, there will be a 2 week update next week! Much much shorter than this one, as here I've explained all the ins and outs of the Teatox, but for anyone interested I hope this helps, and you enjoy the post! I'm really enjoying the tea, and the healthy feelings so I'm in it for the long run!